the future of menswear

[new_dawn_fades]

Its about time we have discussions on this topic. Personally I think
we are now entering a new era of menswear... more elegant perhaps?

After
observing the progression of menswear in the last decade(through
photos), One can gradually see the slimming of the general silhouette.

After
Hedi Slimane's peak at Dior(commerically) circa Doherty, I think the
slim/rakish look is getting more and more mainstream, proof? roberto cavalli does glam rock slimane style..just take a peek at his recent fw 08 show!

Even
here in sydney, people are also catching up..designers who casted buff
tanned men last season, cast slimmer and more rakish youths. And Ive
also noticed the rather heaavy influence of Dior homme, Raf simons,
Cloak ,Ann Demeulemeester and Rick owens in several up and coming
labels.

Where is this going? What will be next? Back to Superhero Muscle Men?

Being a straight thinking male i dont think there will ever be 'mens haute couture' although I certainly see more business for bespoke tailors.

BUT! Are we going to see more experimentation with silhouette? and the general structure of male garments?

I think the answer for that has a lot to do with the attitude of the modern man and his BUYING tendancies.

Whether he wears clothes for himeself or to fit in with the current trends.- this factor obviously depends on his geographical location.

This is My list of innovative designers to watch:

Carol Christian Poell (although not too daring in silhouette, carol does some intense work w/fabrics, construction etc)

Bernhard
Willhelm ( This guy is actually experimenting with volume and print,,,
which is somewhat do-able compared to his counterparts eg.Marjan
Pejoski- whos menswear for gender confused men doesnt seem to do
justice to his skill, although i must say I have seen some fantastic
pieces from him.)

Aitor Throup - After seeing his graduation collection, I must say i was spellbound. I cant wait to see more stuff.

Rick Owens - God know what kind of alien goths we are going to be exposed to, Rick seems to come up with fantastic jackets.

Raf Simons - Raf has been rather stagnant for the last 2 seasons aside from his shorts in ss07. i HOPE to see more.

Julius-
I dont need to say much about this label...this forum will speak for
itself.

The IFFY's

Hedi Slimane?
- Am I still waiting for him to get back to his Luster Era
form..or was luster the brainchild of NATaralis? slimane is 20/80

Ann
Demeulemeester - This depends on Anns design team i suppose..or the
person in charge of menswear...Im sure ann doesnt design it herself..It
is definitely supervised..I would be surprised if Ann has been doing it
so far.. Although i love her clothes, i think she plays it safe.

Chalayan--
why do I always seem to expect stuff from this guy?... even after he
said that he doesnt like the idea of men wearind designer
garments.there is little hope

Margiela-- Some nice stuff
but...ver very subtle..I would love to see osmething daring from his
maison... daring yet doable..not like the vest made out of playing
cards(rofl).

Carpe Diem -- Linea is gone.. Sartoria/Anatomica was
scrapped... and maurizio stopped designing... meh..a lot of the stuff
on the rack seems very ordinary...and there is nothing innovative about
those washed leather shirts...although the treatments are cool.

I am sure there are several other talented designers out there...Id like to know more.

so please people get talking!!

[nqth]

Re: the future of menswear

Ann D. said inan interview that she often starts designing the men collection first, before doingthe women.

[Faust]

Re: the future of menswear



[quote user="nqth"]Ann D. said inan interview that she often starts designing the men collection first, before doingthe women.[/quote]

Yep, she has said in another interview that she designs it herself. Maybe this changed with the standalone menswear line, but I don't think so. If you look closely, there are still large parallels between the mens and the womens - even if she doesn't do everything herself (which is understandable, a human being can only do so much), the ideas are definitely still hers.

I don't know where the menswear will go. I don't think that men will follow high end fashion the way women do in the mainstream - they just don't care enough, that's all. What has been happening lately is the rise of a new uniform - from khaki and polo shirts to eurotrash jeans and hoodies. Only the uniform has changed - not the state of mind. Men just want to throw something one and not think about it.

For the part of the male population that is paying more attention to how they dress the same thing is and will be happening as it has been for women - a battle for hearts and minds (read: wallets) between the major houses waged through advertising and the media.

[zamb]

Re: the future of menswear



NDF, a most notable absentee from your list id Bruno Pieters, He has a new menswear line, also it is interesting to see what he will do at Hugo Boss (although personally i dont like the pairing

[nqth]

Re: the future of menswear



I think Ann could take men collectionas a "base" from which she develop a collection for women with her typical techniques, fabrics...

I think the most interestinginfashion is the change of the league. When an avantgard designer wants to sell more a bit, and when the "more commercial" designer wants to be a bit more interesting. Being in the same league all the time is comfortable and nice, but boring. So the more creative designers always try to work on new things and risk a bit. I always welcome that :-)

EDIT:

As for fall, I saw two things:-)

1. the "more buff" silhouette, styll very young. Kind of brighter, more sport than rock and roll.

2. the more sophisticated, grown upattitude, both in term of Lanvin and CdG

[mutterlein]

Re: the future of menswear

If you look at the recent crop of designers who are gaining attention you can see some common threads between them (no pun intended)

Thom Browne, Lucas Ossendriver, Bruno Pieters, Oliver Helden, Patrik Ervell, etc

Whether you like them or not they represent a new vanguard, a generation that I believe will actually matter in how men are going to dress. I feel designers like Plohkov came a little too early, and now he's at Versace.... Tom Ford is back in the biz, and Hedi Slimane will be showing again in too long, men's fashion has become very exciting and the stakes are very high. There is a definite sense of new and old and that generally means change is on the brink.

[mutterlein]

Re: the future of menswear

check out a recent post in a blog I started...

www.faggoting.blogspot.com

It's a contrast of Tom Ford and Thom Browne. A long with this, I think suits in general are going to become increasingly important in menswear as they break off into a real of casual sleek previously unexplored. This is something Thom Browne has really been exploring.

[Servo2000]

Re: the future of menswear

[quote user="mutterlein"]check out a recent post in a blog I started...

www.faggoting.blogspot.com

It's a contrast of Tom Ford and Thom Browne. A long with this, I think suits in general are going to become increasingly important in menswear as they break off into a real of casual sleek previously unexplored. This is something Thom Browne has really been exploring.

[/quote]

Fascinating blog name.